Session Mead - inspiration and recipe for an Unoriginal Clone

[biochemedic]

For a while, I've been thinking about brewing a lower gravity "session" mead, and I've finally gone and done it. I was inspired by a couple of things: first, I wanted to get my kegerator filled up! Also, I live very close to an awesome meadery, Apis. On a recent visit, they had a really great, low ABV, IPA style hopped mead that was called "Unoriginal," (which I think is an hysterical name, BTW...and making a clone of it is even funnier to me, for some reason.) Finally, I was already acting on inspiration #1, and had been planning on brewing a version of the 15 Min Pale Ale.

So this got me thinking, what if I just substitute the dry malt extract for honey to reach the same OG? Then, what I also did was to increase the crystal malt in that recipe to give a little more body and residual sweetness, to counteract the fact that I expect the honey to be completely fermented off.

Here's what the final recipe was:

Unoriginal Clone (a pale hoppy session mead...)

5 Gallons
OG: ~1.059 (depending on the pppg of your honey)
IBU's: 50

2 lbs Crystal 10L
6.5 lbs Honey (I used a medium color wildflower)
2 oz Falconer's Flight (10.4 alpha) @ 15 min
2 oz Amarillo (8.5 alpha) @ 10 min
1 oz Falconer's Flight @ 2 min
1 oz Amarillo @ flameout
1 oz Falconer's Flight (Dry Hop)
1 oz Amarillo (Dry Hop)

The malt was steeped in the strike water and as I started heating, and was removed at around ~170*F.
I then did a 15 min boil as per the inspiring recipe linked above, then cooled to 60*F and pitched 11g rehydrated US-05 Yeast. Went with that yeast as I wanted a clean fermenting, relatively attenuating yeast.

Yes, it's a lot of hops, but it takes a fair bit of hops to get the IBU's up with so short of a boil. You do get great hop flavor and aroma though, using this "hopburst" technique!
Yes, I would still consider this a mead...only a minimum amount of the fermentables come from the barley. Perhaps we can consider it a "Hop and Barley Metheglin!"

I am also still doing SNA's, although may not be necessary given the barley addition...

I'll update this as it gets completed...I'm very interested to see what my FG will be with the 2 lbs of crystal in the mix. If necessary, I may stabilize and backsweeten slightly before it goes in the keg...

 

[loveofrose]

For session mead (<1.090), I've found 1 TBSP of Fermaid O upfront per gallon works great. No need to stagger.

 

[bernardsmith]

For session mead (<1.090), I've found 1 TBSP of Fermaid O upfront per gallon works great. No need to stagger.

I would have thought a session mead would need to be closer to 1.040 - 1.050 . How many ounces of a 12% wine are you going to drink in an evening?

 

[biochemedic]

For session mead (<1.090), I've found 1 TBSP of Fermaid O upfront per gallon works great. No need to stagger.

I would have thought a session mead would need to be closer to 1.040 - 1.050 . How many ounces of a 12% wine are you going to drink in an evening?

I've been using Fermax (which, to my understanding, is DAP plus some trace minerals) and generic "yeast energizer" (which I take to be yeast hulls, mostly.) I generally do 1.5 tsp of each at the start then additional doses at 48 hrs after initial fermentation starts, then again in a few days if fermentation is still active. I suppose I could just leave out the additional doses for this lower gravity ferment.

I would guess the second question depends on what you think of as "session!"
One could suppose that 9% is session relative to most meads... With my situation, I started with the assumption that I would have a FG of at least 1.010 given the 2 lbs of crystal malt...that's still 6.5%, admittedly more than most "session" beers, and I did consider starting with less sugar. However, I wasn't 100% sure what the yeast would do with the crystal, and how much truly unfermentable stuff I would end up with, so I went with matching the OG of the 15 min pale ale recipe. I may tweak things in future batches if I want more or less bang for my buck, so to speak...

 

[loveofrose]

I would have thought a session mead would need to be closer to 1.040 - 1.050 . How many ounces of a 12% wine are you going to drink in an evening?

The point was the fermentation is healthy done this way for anything less than 1.09.

I have been known to throw down quite a few on occasion. [emoji1]

 

[bernardsmith]

Then that's an "occasion" not a "session"..

 

[Rileysowner]

Are you boiling the honey? Wouldn't that remove much of the honey characteristics?

 

[biochemedic]

Are you boiling the honey? Wouldn't that remove much of the honey characteristics?

Not as much as the naysayers would lead you to believe!

It's not to say that I normally boil my meads, but if you look at some of the evidence out there, and if you actually try it yourself and make the comparison, you'll find that boiling honey isn't the devil that it's made out to be.

Additionally, the backsweetening going into the keg adds even more honey character and flavor back in.

 

[bernardsmith]

How did this turn out?

 

[Rileysowner]

I think I will try it, although I am not sure I can get Falconer's Flight Hops around here. Possible online, but I prefer supporting the LHBS, and shipping in Canada is ridiculously expensive. I probably will not boil the honey. I will steep the crystal in some water, then boil that with the hops, adding the honey after the boil.

 

[biochemedic]

How did this turn out?

Well, I realized just today that I forgot to tell you! It turned out great!

The finishing gravity was actually quite low, despite the crystal malt; it ended at 1.002. As a consequence, it did indeed end up at a little more than "session" level ABV (it was ~ 7.5%! ) After stabilizing with sorbate and metabisulfite, I backsweetened with 20 oz of honey, which I estimated would add 10 gravity points. I did neglect to measure a gravity after the addition though...

I also added some supplemental acid, 1 tsp of citric acid, and 1 tsp malic. This really helped complement the fruitiness of the hops, and further balanced the residual sweetness. After all the additions and force carbonation, this was one of the most interesting things I've ever brewed! Thoroughly pleasant, and very drinkable! I'm already on version 2, using all Nelson Sauvin hops...that one is carbing up now, and by all preliminary samples is going to be as good as the first. The second brew finished even lower (1.000) than the first. Still, with the crystal malt and the proteins from the backsweetening, the final brew has very nice body and head retention. I'm on a work trip right now, but once I get back, I'll try to remember to degas a sample of the current batch and check to see what the post-backsweetening gravity is...

I brought a sample of the first version to a brewer whose palate I trust (homebrewer turned pro, BJCP certified, LHBS owner), and got very positive feedback. He did think that there might have been a touch of some astringency, which he thought might've been from steeping the grains in the full volume of the brew. On the second attempt, I separately steeped the crystal in a 1.5 quart per pound of grain volume before adding to the main kettle. Hopefully this will correct that minor flaw.

Overall I think this is a very successful recipe, if I do say so myself....I hope some of you others will brew it and concur!

 

[Rileysowner]

Once I have some fermentation vessels available, I think I will try this. Thanks for the update.

 

[biochemedic]

I think I will try it, although I am not sure I can get Falconer's Flight Hops around here. Possible online, but I prefer supporting the LHBS, and shipping in Canada is ridiculously expensive. I probably will not boil the honey. I will steep the crystal in some water, then boil that with the hops, adding the honey after the boil.

Don't get stuck on the specific hops that I used. You could create this with any assertive hop or hop blend. As I mentioned I just re-brewed a batch with Nelson Sauvin. I think this would be awesome with Mosaic, Citra, Simcoe, or even Amarillo by itself. Obviously you will need to tinker with the amounts and exact timing of additions based on the alpha values of your particular hops. I plan on making this a stock item in my kegerator, and a vehicle for trying new single hops...some that are on my radar and have yet to work with are Dr. Rudi, Calypso, Azacca....

I don't want to turn this into a boil vs no boil thread derail, but just check out this blog, if you haven't already: The Washington Winemaker's boil vs no boil experiment, and the results of his test. Regardless, in this recipe I think the backsweetening more than accounts for any loss from the brief boil.

Once I have some fermentation vessels available, I think I will try this. Thanks for the update.

Please do, and share your experience when you do!

 

[Rileysowner]

I was thinking of Citra hops with the Amarillo. So what does this look like when it is done? I am curious to see what that amount of crystal malt gives in terms of color.

 

[biochemedic]

Here ya go! Just a nice golden hue.

A sweet pour after getting home from night shift...

View attachment 1508421283378.jpg

 

[Rileysowner]

Here ya go! Just a nice golden hue.

A sweet pour after getting home from night shift...

I like the look. I think I will try it out, although I will only do a 1 gallon batch.

 

[biochemedic]

UPDATE: Last night I poured a sample and set it to warm up and degas. Checked gravity post backsweetening and it's reading 1.012 corrected. This level of sweetness seems to work after carbonation, although for my tastes, I think it could be just a tad lower...maybe next batch I'll add a couple ounces less honey...

 

[Rileysowner]

I have everything I need to make this; now I just have to find the time. I have a bunch of repairs to do on the truck, and that takes priority at the moment. If they go well, I may be able to get to it tomorrow. If not, well, I will cross that bridge when I get to it.

 

[Rileysowner]

UPDATE: Last night I poured a sample and set it to warm up and degas. Checked gravity post backsweetening and it's reading 1.012 corrected. This level of sweetness seems to work after carbonation, although for my tastes, I think it could be just a tad lower...maybe next batch I'll add a couple ounces less honey...

So you did back sweeten it? I have the option of either using natural carbonation with no back sweetening, or force carbonation with a carbonation cap which I have not used yet. I have kegs, but they are full and getting a new one is out of the budget at the moment.

 

[biochemedic]

I think it really has to be stabilized and backsweetened (and then force carbonated). It tastes pretty good out of the fermenter but *much* better after the acid and honey additions, and carbonated...

 

[Rileysowner]

I think it really has to be stabilized and backsweetened (and then force carbonated). It tastes pretty good out of the fermenter but *much* better after the acid and honey additions, and carbonated...

So you back sweetened to about 1.012, added 1 tsp of Citric and 1 tsp of malic for 5 gallons. I need to get a keg empty.

 

[biochemedic]

So you back sweetened to about 1.012, added 1 tsp of Citric and 1 tsp of malic for 5 gallons. I need to get a keg empty.

That's about the size of it...you could probably get away with just 2 tsp acid blend if you only had that, but when I did some tasting samples with various acids, we liked having the extra citric...seemed to bring out the fruitiness of the hops best.

For the honey I have (~1.039 pppg), and the FG's that I've been getting (1.000 to 1.002), about 20 oz of honey put me where I wanted to be sweetness-wise. Don't forget to stabilize with K meta and K sorbate first!

 

[Rileysowner]

That's about the size of it...you could probably get away with just 2 tsp acid blend if you only had that, but when I did some tasting samples with various acids, we liked having the extra citric...seemed to bring out the fruitiness of the hops best.

For the honey I have (~1.039 pppg), and the FG's that I've been getting (1.000 to 1.002), about 20 oz of honey put me where I wanted to be sweetness-wise. Don't forget to stabilize with K meta and K sorbate first!

I was hoping to get this going on the weekend, but vehicle repairs ate up much of my time and energy, and there is still more to do

The forecast is for rain today and tomorrow, so maybe I can get a batch going. I have a pile of things to bottle as well, so I need to get that out of the way as well. This intrigues me, so I want to get it going.

 

[tgl3nnon]

Full 5 gallons in the boil I assume?

 

[biochemedic]

Full 5 gallons in the boil I assume?

Yes, I generally do a full volume boil, and this was no exception. It's such a short boil, so I don't worry too much about boil off, and just compensate with a little top off water in the carboy if needed/if the volume seems a bit low.

 

[tgl3nnon]

Yes, I generally do a full volume boil, and this was no exception. It's such a short boil, so I don't worry too much about boil off, and just compensate with a little top off water in the carboy if needed/if the volume seems a bit low.

Sounds like it is worth trying. I have a good amount of the supplies already. How long did you let it age before it is drinkable?

 

[biochemedic]

How long did you let it age before it is drinkable?

It doesn't really need any aging at all. I pretty much treat this more like a beer than a mead. I'm somewhat of a lazy brewer with a crazy schedule, so sometimes these times lag a bit, but roughly speaking, I let fermentation finish and let it mostly clear, which takes anywhere from a week to two weeks. I then dry hop for a week or so, then stabilize, backsweeten and keg. Once it's carbed up (couple of days) I'm drinking it!

Easily less than a month from brew day, and that could be sped up if you were to cold crash or use finings to clear it up prior to dry hopping. You could also consider dry hopping in the keg, which would also speed up the process by a couple of days...

 

[Rileysowner]

I finally got around to making this. I used Citra instead o the Falconer's Flight and my OG 1.053. I am looking forward to seeing how it finishes up. Now to get my kegs clean and refurbished to carbonate this.

 

[biochemedic]

Can't wait to hear how it turns out!

 

[Rileysowner]

I tasted my first bottle of this today. I added the acids and since I wanted to bottle condition I added a bit of lactose. It has a strong aroma from the Amarillo and a strong citrus flavor with just a hint of bitterness. Overall I am quite happy with it. My one regret is not recording how much lactose I used as I will have to experiment with the next batch to hopefully get it right, and yes, there will be a next batch. This drinks like something that would be perfect on a hot summer day after a long bike ride or mowing the lawn.

 

[bernardsmith]

I tasted my first bottle of this today. I added the acids and since I wanted to bottle condition I added a bit of lactose.

I understand that wine or beer yeasts cannot ferment lactose. You say you added lactose to "bottle condition" . Wouldn't the lactose add a little sweetness not CO2?

 

[Rileysowner]

I understand that wine or beer yeasts cannot ferment lactose. You say you added lactose to "bottle condition" . Wouldn't the lactose add a little sweetness not CO2?

Since I didn't have kegs available to force carbonate, I decided to bottle condition. However, the suggestion made above was to stabilize and back sweeten to 1.012. Doing that would have made it impossible to bottle condition, so I figured I would try lactose since it is not fermentable. I did add dextrose to get the bottle carbonation shooting for about 2.5 volumes of CO2. As I said, it worked wonderfully, but I didn't keep records of how much lactose I added nor did I take a gravity reading after I added it. I should have, but I had other batches to bottle at the same time, so I didn't keep accurate records and went by feel and guesstimated. As usual, doing so has resulted in a product I really like which I likely will not be able to replicate.

 

[biochemedic]

Since I didn't have kegs available to force carbonate, I decided to bottle condition. However, the suggestion made above was to stabilize and back sweeten to 1.012. Doing that would have made it impossible to bottle condition, so I figured I would try lactose since it is not fermentable. I did add dextrose to get the bottle carbonation shooting for about 2.5 volumes of CO2. As I said, it worked wonderfully, but I didn't keep records of how much lactose I added nor did I take a gravity reading after I added it. I should have, but I had other batches to bottle at the same time, so I didn't keep accurate records and went by feel and guesstimated. As usual, doing so has resulted in a product I really like which I likely will not be able to replicate.

Lost track of this thread over the holidays...

You should still be able to back your way into how much lactose (roughly) you added. Even if you didn't check a gravity sample prior to bottling, you certainly can degas a sample, get it up to appropriate temperature, and check a gravity now. I forget what the PPPG for lactose is, but you can look that up, and using your total volume, calculate about how much lactose you used. Even if you didn't have a pre-lactose finishing gravity, you could estimate that too; in my experience, this recipe finishes almost completely dry, my FG's have been between 1.000 and 1.003.

As an aside, I've used the lactose with priming sugar technique for semi-sweet cider in the past, prior to my starting kegging. It does work, and the cider I made that was wasn't bad, but I will say that I like the stabilize/backsweeten/keg carb technique much better!

Glad you like the recipe, and yes, it is very refreshing, and I also could see it being nice for relaxing on a hot day!